House Intel Member Gowdy: ‘I Am Awaiting The Mueller Investigation’

UNITED STATES - DECEMBER 13: From left, Reps. Mike Johnson, R-La., Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., Trey Gowdy, R-S.C., and Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, attend a House Judiciary Committee hearing in Rayburn Building on the Justice Department's investigation of Russia's interference in the 2016 election featuring testimony by Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein on December 13, 2017. (Photo By Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call)
UNITED STATES - DECEMBER 13: From left, Reps. Mike Johnson, R-La., Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., Trey Gowdy, R-S.C., and Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, attend a House Judiciary Committee hearing in Rayburn Building on the Justice Departm... UNITED STATES - DECEMBER 13: From left, Reps. Mike Johnson, R-La., Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., Trey Gowdy, R-S.C., and Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, attend a House Judiciary Committee hearing in Rayburn Building on the Justice Department's investigation of Russia's interference in the 2016 election featuring testimony by Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein on December 13, 2017. (Photo By Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call) MORE LESS
Start your day with TPM.
Sign up for the Morning Memo newsletter

Rep. Trey Gowdy (R-SC) said Sunday that he places more faith in federal investigators’ conclusions on Russian election meddling than those of Republicans on the House Intelligence Committee, of which he is a member.

“The President, when he looks at your report, feels vindicated,” CBS’ “Face the Nation” host Margaret Brennan told Gowdy in an interview. “Are you saying he should not?”

“I want to be careful how I phrase this,” Gowdy responded. “No report— The best we can do is say what we’ve learned.”

“I can’t say what’s in the universe of witnesses we have not talked to,” he continued. “And I have always maintained I am awaiting the Mueller investigation. They get to use a grand jury. They have investigative tools that we don’t have.”

“Executive branch investigations are just better than congressional ones. So we found no evidence of collusion. Whether or not it exists or not, I can’t speak to, because I haven’t interviewed the full panoply of witnesses.”

Republicans on the Intelligence Committee released a heavily redacted report on Friday clearing Trump of accusations that his campaign conspired with Russia during the 2016 election. Democrats on the committee released a counter-report and have long claimed that their GOP colleagues did not sufficiently pursue relevant questions and witnesses.

The President said he was “honored” by Republicans’ report and inaccurately claimed it was “totally conclusive.”

Former FBI Director James Comey on Sunday was similarly blunt about committee Republicans’ report, calling it a “political document” and adding that “the most important piece of work is the one the special counsel’s doing now.”

“From the standpoint of where these matters are best investigated, I don’t think it’s in Congress right now,” Gowdy said Sunday, responding to Comey’s comments.

The congressman, who chairs the House Oversight Committee, announced in January that he would retire from Congress after his current term ends.

This post has been updated.

Latest Livewire

Notable Replies

  1. “From the standpoint of where these matters are best investigated, I don’t think it’s in Congress right now,” Gowdy said Sunday…

    ‘…because Paul Ryan let one of Trump’s stooges run the show and I didn’t say anything about it.’

  2. Sure, try to have it both ways, you two-faced little traitor. But you almost can’t blame him, because the face he was born with is indelibly expressive of the junkyard rat he is inside.

  3. I don’t know if I want to laugh at the underbussing, applaud the skillful dagger work or spit in disgust at the shameful hypocrisy.

  4. “From the standpoint of where these matters are best investigated, I don’t think it’s in Congress right now,” Gowdy said Sunday,

    I’m quite confident that Gowdy thought the GOP controlled Congress was the ultimate tool to conduct thorough, in depth investigations that produced infallible conclusions on the operations of a Democratic administration. Funny how things change so quickly.

  5. No sh*t Sherlock.
    We are all awaiting the investigation.

Continue the discussion at forums.talkingpointsmemo.com

76 more replies

Participants

Avatar for paulw Avatar for xpurg8d Avatar for old_curmudgeon Avatar for ncsteve Avatar for mattinpa Avatar for clunkertruck Avatar for daveyjones64 Avatar for ralph_vonholst Avatar for tecmage Avatar for lastroth Avatar for greylady Avatar for pshah Avatar for dommyluc Avatar for edhedh Avatar for bankerpup Avatar for timbo Avatar for jquas2sunset Avatar for erik_t Avatar for tommie Avatar for bobef Avatar for ohcomeonnow Avatar for karlwlewis Avatar for katex Avatar for captain_america

Continue Discussion
Masthead Masthead
Founder & Editor-in-Chief:
Executive Editor:
Managing Editor:
Deputy Editor:
Editor at Large:
General Counsel:
Publisher:
Head of Product:
Director of Technology:
Associate Publisher:
Front End Developer:
Senior Designer: